Frankie Horne “Blitzboks Will Bounce Back”

Springbok Sevens veteran Frankie Horne says the team will be focusing on improving their performances at the upcoming Hong Kong and Tokyo World Series tournaments.

The Blitzboks started their 2014-15 season in emphatic fashion, winning two of the opening legs in Dubai and Port Elizabeth.

However, they stuttered in Wellington and Las Vegas (where they were defending tournament champions), only managing bronze medals during both legs.

Despite this drop in form, South Africa still hold top spot on the overall standings, with four tournaments left on the schedule. New Zealand and Fiji, who are currently the in-form teams, are hot on their heels, trailing by five and seven log points respectively.

Horne stressed that the team will be working on their problem areas ahead of their trip to Hong Kong (27-29 March) and Tokyo (4-5 April).

“We weren’t happy with our performances during the past two tournaments,” Horne told MyPlayers.co.za. “In Wellington, I think we set our minds too far ahead and didn’t focus enough on the game against France. They managed to pull off the upset win, and we were on the back foot throughout the tournament.

“In Las Vegas, we didn’t perform as well as we wanted to. As a team, we know our potential, and we want to be competing for the title.

“There are some positives, though. Despite these disappointing performances, we still finished third, and we still hold the lead in the overall rankings. We need to back ourselves and aim for improvement going into the next few tournaments.”

The Springbok Sevens have never won a Hong Kong Sevens title before, but Horne said this will not be their main focus going into the tournament.

“We don’t want to make the same mistake as we did in Wellington. We were high in confidence and looked too far ahead,” said Horne. “Yes, we’d love to win, but we need to take things one game at a time. We need to plan according to our next opponents, and make sure we are well prepared for the match.”

The Springbok Sevens feature in Group C along with France, Argentina and Japan.

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